


Rascals... Again

by Lady_Sci_Fi



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-04
Updated: 2018-02-07
Packaged: 2018-10-14 15:59:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10539780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Sci_Fi/pseuds/Lady_Sci_Fi
Summary: A mysterious force shakes a runabout returning from Bajor, physically de-aging Sisko, Kira, Bashir, and Garak.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started thinking about a DS9 version of the TNG episode "Rascals," and had to write it.  
> Late Season 3

 “Really, Doctor, I don’t see how you could interpret that section in that way,” Garak said.

 Julian scooted forward to the edge of his chair and scrolled through the text on his padd. “Look, right here…”

 Sisko glanced over the runabout controls in front of him, covering his affectionate chuckle at the literature discussion by clearing his throat quietly. After a moment, he heard Garak ask, “Commander, have you ever read the poetry of Jaken Lemorniz?”

 Sisko turned in his chair. “I can’t say I have.” His eyes looked the couple over, and smiled. “And even if I was familiar, I wouldn’t dare get involved with this conversation.”

 “Pity,” Garak commented. “I fear our dear doctor may be a little too romantic to properly appreciate it.”

 Julian narrowed his eyes. “You weren’t complaining about my being too romantic the past three days.”

 Kira came from the back of the runabout, a mug in hand. “Don’t tell me you two argued over books the entire time.”

 Garak raised a hand and waved slightly. “No, we were more… productive than that.”

 “Very much so,” Julian agreed with a suggestive smile at the Cardassian.

 “Please, no details,” Kira replied, wrinkling her nose as she sat in the chair on Sisko’s other side.

 “I must admit, it was quite refreshing being off the station and on a nice part of Bajor. Though I am interested in the political conference you two attended,” Garak slightly titled his head.

 Kira groaned at the mention of the three-day conference she and Sisko had been part of. “You two get a little vacation, while we get to be with politicians and people complaining over trivial things. Hardly fair.”

 “I’ll approve leave for you soon, if you want,” Sisko offered.

 “I might take you up on that.”

 “Major, are you familiar with the poetry of Jaken Lemorniz?” Julian asked.

 Kira exchanged a glance with Sisko. She stared down into her mug. “Oh no, I am not getting involved in that.”

 “Shame,” Julian sighed. He got up to get a mug of tea from the replicator. “Our dear tailor may be a little too cynical to properly appreciate it.”

 “Cynical?” Garak stood to approach Julian. “What you mistake for cyni-“

 “Hey, if you two are going to keep that up, take it to the back and be quieter about it,” Kira interrupted.

 Julian hid his embarrassed smile behind his mug and mock-glared at the Cardassian. “Now look what you’ve done,” he whispered.

 “What I’ve done? I think you were just as-“

 “I will lock you back there myself!” Kira snapped.

 Garak raised an eyeridge, and took Julian’s mug and sipped the tea to partially hide his expression.

 Kira leaned towards Sisko to whisper, “I am never sharing a runabout with those two again.”

 Sisko grinned and shook his head. “Who would you rather be with? Them or the politicians?”

 Kira fixed a withering glare at the commander, and blew out a short breath.

 Julian had just grabbed another mug of tea from the replicator, since Garak wasn’t going to give his original one back, when everyone froze at the shake of the runabout. He and Garak had just put their mugs back in the replicator as another more powerful shake happened.

 “What’s that?” Julian asked, settling into his seat at the consoles when a third quake passed through. The tips of his fingers started to tingle, almost like static electricity was weakly going through them.

 “There’s nothing on sensors,” Kira reported. “It’s not reading anything out there. Scanning internally… No runabout malfunctions being picked up.”

 “Taking us on a course away from this route,” Sisko said. The shake that followed his statement nearly threw them from their chairs.

 “Is anyone else feeling that electricity?” Garak inquired.

 “I am. Let me know if it gets worse,” Julian replied.

 “It’s already gone up to my shoulders,” Kira stated, keeping her concentration on her controls.

 Julian stood to get the medkit off the wall, and another shake, more powerful than the rest, knocked him off his feet. He got a hand under him to get back up, but the electric feeling in his hands swiftly moved up to his head. He couldn’t fight off unconsciousness for more than a few seconds as it spread throughout his entire body.

 ********

 A groan escaped Julian’s mouth as he came back to consciousness. He kept his eyes closed for a few seconds as he mentally went over his body for any pain. There was none, and even that electric feeling was completely gone. He opened his eyes and raised his hand. “What…?” he whispered at the sight of the sleeve of his casual shirt completely covering his arm and draping over his forearm. He pulled it down until he could see his hand, and furrowed his brow. Did it really look smaller than it should be?

 Julian’s attention went to the other three as they began to stir and groan awake as well. He tried to quickly get to his feet, but nearly tripped and had to steady himself against the wall. He looked down, to find his trousers were too long on him, and only barely stayed up around his waist. His shoes were left behind on the floor where he had been knocked down.

 “Report?” came a groggy voice.

 It wasn’t a voice that Julian was familiar with, and he gripped the waist of his trousers, feeling absolutely ridiculous, and took a few steps forward. Why did the runabout suddenly seem larger? He blinked, and the chair Sisko had been sitting in turned. Julian’s eyes widened, and he flinched back.  “Commander?”

 “Doctor?” the eyes of the dark-skinned boy were just as wide. The uniform practically drowned him.

 “Everyone alive?” another voice asked, from Kira’s seat. As soon as she saw her hand against the controls, she jumped back. “What’s wrong with me?”

 Garak’s seat swiveled around to reveal the sight of a Cardassian child, the blue tunic hanging off him very loosely. “I… I think the more accurate question is what’s wrong with all of us?”

 Kira turned her chair to look at the rest of them, her uniform also way too big for her now. “You… you all look like children.” She noticed how all of their shoes had also fallen off their feet.

 “So do you,” Julian stated. He slightly winced at his much younger sounding voice.

 Garak’s hand, after he pulled the sleeve down enough, came up to feel at his face. “Well, this is… most interesting, to say the least.”

 “Any ideas?” Sisko asked.

 “Something to do with whatever was shaking the runabout, and that electrical sensation,” Kira stated.

 Julian turned away to find the medkit. After tripping over the legs of his trousers, he asked, “Anyone mind if I lose these? My shirt is more than long enough to cover everything.” At the go ahead from Sisko, he easily stepped out of them. Before reaching up to the medkit on the wall, he made certain his shirt was long enough.

 It took a few tries to actually grab it, with his new shortened height. He quickly pulled out the tricorder and waved it over himself.

 “So, what do we do now?” Kira asked.

 “Get back to the station, and figure it out from there,” Sisko answered.

 “Is that telling you anything useful?” Garak asked Julian.

 “We should do more extensive medical scanning on the station, but it’s confirming what we’re seeing. I’m showing all the signs of being a healthy Human, age ten to twelve.” Julian stepped over his shoes on the way to them. “Same with you, Commander.” After waving it over Garak and Kira, he nodded. “Same physical age maturity with the two of you.” He sat back down in his chair, which required a little more maneuvering than before.

 “Putting us back on course to DS9,” Sisko said after pressing some buttons, getting used to the size of his hands and reach of his arms.

 “We can’t just show up like this,” said Kira.

 “How else would you suggest we show up, unless you have a way to change us back?” Garak asked.

 Kira looked to Julian, silently asking for an answer. Julian could only shrug and shake his head. “Nothing I can do here, Major.” He couldn’t stop himself from just staring at the others, especially Garak.

 The Bajoran crossed her arms and pressed her lips together, a gesture that made her look more cute than agitated at the moment. “How long until we get there?” she asked after a moment.

 “An hour,” Sisko replied. He looked down himself, sighing at his one-piece uniform overwhelming him. “Might as well start making theories in the meantime.”

 ********

 “Rio Grande is in range,” Jadzia Dax reported from her station in Ops. “I’m sure they’ll be glad to be back after a political conference.” She smirked at Miles O’Brien’s little smile. “Well, at least Sisko and Kira will be. I’m sure Julian and Garak would’ve loved more time on Bajor.” Her mouth turned into a grin at the Chief’s slightly narrowed eyes.

 “Well, I think the Major will be glad to get out of the runabout to get away from them,” Miles replied.

 Jadzia chuckled, and looked down to her console. “That’s odd. They’re hailing us, but only through text.”

 “Something wrong with their comm array?” Miles asked, stepping up to Jadzia’s platform.

 “Probably…” Jadzia took a moment to read the message. She said quietly once the engineer was at her side. “They want us to meet them at the airlock as soon as they dock. Giving them clearance now.”

 Miles grabbed his tool case, knowing there would be something to fix. Jadzia confirmed that the Rio Grande had docked, and told a Bajoran militia officer that he was in charge. They headed to the runabout docking pads together.

 “I ran a scan on their runabout. There was no external damage,” Jadzia said.

 “Not a substantial attack, then? Makes my job easier, whatever happened.”

 “I’m sure they would’ve told us if they had been attacked. So, how many politicians do you think Kira yelled at?”

 They arrived a few minutes later. “Anyone home?” Jadzia asked as the airlock door to the runabout opened.

 “Come in,” replied a voice neither of them recognized, one that sounded… young.

 Jadzia and Miles glanced to each other before entering the cockpit area. Their eyes widened at the sight of four children, two Human, a Bajoran, and a Cardassian, sitting on the chairs in too-big clothes.

 “We’re sorry to surprise you like this,” said the boy in the Starfleet uniform.

 “Do you recognize us?” asked the Bajoran girl.

 Miles’ eyes glanced over them all individually as the situation fully hit him, and he nearly dropped his tool case. “You have got to be kidding me.”


	2. Chapter 2

 It took Jadzia and Miles a long minute to get over the shock of seeing three fellow officers and the station’s tailor as children. Sisko broke the quiet with, “Obviously, we’ll want to keep this quiet.”

 “Indeed,” Jadzia replied. “That would be best for the time being.”

 After a short discussion, it was decided that they would study what had happened in one of the science labs. Jadzia left to make sure one was open and prepare it. Miles stayed behind to start trying to figure out what had happened to the shuttle, pointedly trying to not look at the others sitting in the cockpit.

 It didn’t take long for Jadzia’s voice to come through Miles’ commbadge. “Alright, you can beam them over now.”

 “Will do,” Miles responded.

 “Chief, on your way to the lab, bring the Constable along with you. He should also be informed of this… development,” Sisko said as they awkwardly walked to the transporter, picking up their travel bags from the back room first.

 “Yes sir,” Miles nodded, following them, shaking his head in exasperation. Once they stood at the transporter pad, Miles sighed at how ridiculous they all looked, standing there in adult-sized clothes. Julian’s shirt was nearly at his knees, his bare legs sticking out until the top of his socks. Garak had chosen to roll up his trouser legs, and keep a hand on the waistband, instead of taking them off. Sisko and Kira looked less fortunate, with the jumpsuit nature of their uniforms causing it to bunch up in more awkward ways. “Energizing.”

 They materialized in a science lab. Jadzia was at the replicator, and turned when they arrived. “First thing is to get you all out of those clothes,” she said with a little grin. She picked up a stack of four sets of grey underwear with different coloured shirts, and trousers. “Purple one is for you, Kira, since you’re smaller than the boys.”

 “Been awhile since you’ve called me a boy, Old Man,” Sisko remarked, taking the green clothes.

 Garak took the black set, unfolded the shirt, and held it up. “Must these be so… plain and drab?”

 “You’re welcome to go through Jake’s closet to see if he still has any of his old clothes that might fit you,” Sisko suggested.

 Garak wrinkled his nose. “On second thought, this is fine.”

 Julian couldn’t hide the giggle at Garak’s reaction as he took the dark blue clothes.

 Jadzia took Kira to the small storage closet to give her a private place to change. Sisko went to the other side of the table to give himself some private distance. Garak turned his back on Julian as he changed.

 Julian turned around as well, though he couldn’t help himself from peeking behind at Garak. The ridges on his neck, shoulders, and sides were softer and smaller in proportion, to match the less-defined and softer ones on his face. Overall, Garak was very cute as a child, though Julian wouldn’t tell him to his face.

 Julian quickly turned and blushed as Garak turned to peek at his back. He bit his lip to stop the smile at the fact that Garak was taking the same opportunity as him. Sure, they had seen each other in various states of undress several times, but this was a unique situation.

 “These fit well enough,” Sisko said as Jadzia and Kira came back.

 Garak nodded. “You have a good eye for guessing size, Lieutenant. Although…” a small shiver went through his body. “Could I have a jacket as well? I’m used to thicker clothes.”

 Jadzia gestured to the replicator with her head. Garak went over and ordered a jacket of the same material and colour, and added a hood to it.

 “Alright, one of you get up on the table, and we can start scanning,” Jadzia said. She had to bite her lip to stop from grinning at the sight as Kira decided to go first and had to boost herself up onto the table.

 Sisko, Julian, and Garak sat on the floor against a wall to wait their turns. A couple minutes later, Miles came in, with Odo right behind.

 Odo took a look at the girl on the table and the boys on the floor. “I see what you mean, Chief.”

 “Afternoon, Odo,” Julian greeted.

 “So you haven’t been mentally de-aged as well?” Odo inquired.

 “Thankfully, no,” Garak answered.

 “This is only physical as far as we know,” Sisko said, tugging on his ear.

 Miles went to stand at Jadzia’s side as she scanned Kira with a large device more sensitive than the tricorder in the runabout. “Can you check if they still have their… oh what was it… puberty growth marker in their… DNA? No, RNA? Something like that.”

 “You have experience with this?” Sisko inquired.

 Miles rubbed the back of his neck as he turned to the commander. “Something similar happened a few weeks before I transferred to DS9. Turns out due to the emergency nature of the transport from their shuttle, it took out their growth markers. We were able to put them back in through another transport sequence.”

 “It’ll take these tests a little time to process all that,” Jadzia informed.

 “But we weren’t in a transporter,” Kira replied. “Something was shaking the runabout and making us all feel this… sort of electricity. Then we all passed out and woke up like this.”

 “Wouldn’t hurt to check the Chief’s suggestion, anyway,” Julian said. “I’ll be able to see that discrepancy if it’s there.”

 “Then there’s the issue of what do we do until we figure out the problem,” Garak brought up.

 “Is there any reason to keep them here until it’s figured out how to change them back?” Odo asked.

 “No. After I’m done scanning them all, I’d actually suggest they go home and get some rest,” Jadzia replied. She patted Kira’s shoulder. “You’re done. Who wants to go next?” 

 Sisko and Julian got up at the same time. Julian bowed his head slightly, “After you, Commander.”

 Sisko smiled and hopped up onto the table. Jadzia transferred Kira’s data to the computer, and Julian went to look through the processing data. Miles joined him, feeling quite awkward with how he now towered over the doctor.

 Julian felt the engineer’s gaze down on the top of his head. “I know I’m probably cute, but would you stop staring?”

 “Sorry,” Miles’ moved his eyes to the computer screen. “I’m just thinking of how much more annoying you’ll be like this.”

 Julian chuckled, though it sounded more like a giggle. “I don’t see how you could find me more annoying than usual.”

 “We’ll see.”

 Kira crossed her arms from her spot near Odo. “So if we’re going to keep this quiet, what’s the official story we’re going to use?”

 “You picked up some unknown illness and are now in quarantine until further notice,” Odo suggested.

 Sisko nodded his approval. “No one will expect to see us around, and it’s doubtful anyone would recognize us like this, allowing us to walk around freely.  No one would intentionally go looking for us, either.” He looked up at Jadzia, and wasn’t that strange. “You’re in command until we fix this.”

 “You could still command from behind her,” Miles said.

 “I could, but Dax is qualified.”

 “Thank you, Benjamin. Now sit still.”

 Sisko stopped fidgeting with his hands. “Sorry. In relation to that, the three of us are relieved of duty.”

 “Relieved of… What if we can’t fix this?” Kira asked the question they were all thinking, but hadn’t wanted to bring up.

 “It’s a bit early to subscribe to that opinion,” Garak responded.

 “This might not be a big deal for you, but it is for me,” Kira shot back. 

 “Whatever gave you that impression?” the Cardassian raised an eyeridge.

 “You’ve been calmer than the rest of us.”

 “Don’t mistake that for not being concerned about how this could impact my life.”

 “This isn’t helping,” Odo put a stop to the oncoming argument. Kira huffed and leaned back against the wall.

 “Alright, Garak, your turn,” Jadzia said as Sisko slid off the table.

 “Julian can go,” Garak suggested.

 “Your turn,” Julian insisted as he turned from the computer screen. “You’re not getting out of this.”

 “I wasn’t planning to… You’ve got three other subjects. Is it necessary to study me as well?”

 Julian shook his head with an affectionate smile. “I wish you weren’t so adverse to medical care.”

 Garak rolled his eyes and got up on the table. He rolled his eyes when Jadzia teased, “This won’t hurt a bit.”

 “If you’re going to be free to go about the station, maybe calling you all by your ranks or surnames wouldn’t be a good idea,” Miles brought up. “Quite suspicious.”

 “Indeed, Chief,” Sisko nodded. “Given names only when in public.”

 “Great, stripped of adulthood and rank,” Kira snorted. “Anything else?”

 After a moment, Garak noticed how everyone, except Julian and Odo, looked to him. “What?”

 “What is your given name?” Sisko inquired.

 Garak’s brow furrowed. “I don’t plan on being in public with nearly all of you in this state.”

 “Oh please,” Odo sighed. “You’re acting as though two of us don’t already know it.”

 Garak’s lip darted out for a second. “Fine. It’s Elim.”

 Julian turned to glance to the Cardassian. “See? That wasn’t so hard.” He could only barely hide the grin as Garak rather childishly yanked the hood of his jacket up over his head with a pout at having to answer that question. He resisted the urge to say anything teasingly patronizing.

 “Your turn, Julian,” Jadzia said as the still-pouting Cardassian hopped down.

 Julian was the most fidgety, trying to see what the scanner was showing as it was passed over him. Garak offered, “Would you like me to hold him down?” Julian glared as he sat on his hands to be still.  

 “I didn’t think it was possible,” Jadzia muttered.

 “What?” Julian looked up to her.

 “That you could look even more adorable.”

 Then it was Julian’s turn to pout as his glare turned to Jadzia.

 “All the more reason to change him back as quickly as we can,” Miles remarked. “Goes for them all, really.”

 “Watch it, Chief. I am still your commanding officer,” Sisko replied, though there was teasing in his tone.

 “I thought you just relieved yourself of duty?” Odo pointed out.

 “I do have a memory.” Sisko turned to Miles. “Chief, you said this happened before on the Enterprise? Who was affected and how long did it take to change them back?”

 “Only a couple days. I don’t know how much anyone would want me to say about the personal details of that, but let’s just say I’m glad that this time, I won’t have a family existential crisis.”

 No one commented on the obvious. Jadzia tapped Julian’s shoulder. “You’re done.” To the larger group, “It’ll take a few hours for all the scans to process.”

 “So we’re free to go?” Garak asked.

 “Unless you want to stay here for overnight study?” Jadzia responded.

 “I think not.” Garak picked up his travel bag and immediately headed for the door. Julian picked up his bag and hurried after him with a wave to everyone else.

 Kira left a short moment later when it was clear nothing else was left to be said. Odo requested, “Let me know of any progress,” before he followed her out the door.

 “So… Benjamin, do you want me there when you tell Jake?” Jadzia offered.

 Sisko groaned. “Yes, please.”


	3. Chapter 3

 Julian adjusted the bag strap on his shoulder as he caught up with Garak. “So, have any plans for the day?”

 “Plans? Well, I am quite hungry, and I can feel myself getting tired. So dealing with those would be my plan for right now.” Garak glanced at the Human through the side of his eye. “Are you implying you were going to do something other than that?”

 Julian shrugged. Their bodies had just been through a lot, and he was feeling hunger and tiredness as well. “Not really. Mind if I join you?” He touched the back of Garak’s hand with his.

 Garak grasped the offered hand. “Who else would I possibly desire to spend any time with while we’re… like this?”

 Julian placed a quick kiss on the Cardassian’s cheek. “Your place or mine?”

 “Well… there’s nothing I need from mine at the moment. Yours will do.”

 A moment later, as they emerged from the science labs section and into the more habited areas, they let go of each other’s hand and Garak pulled his hood further forward over his face. It wouldn’t completely hide the fact that he was a Cardassian child, which would be very conspicuous, but it would give him some anonymity.

 Julian kept looking up and around, getting a feel for how the station appeared at his shorter height. It was a bit unsettling, as whatever had happened to them should be. Still, he was determined to not let it get to him too much. If all went well, they’d be back to normal in a couple days.

 They didn’t pass many people on the way to Julian’s quarters, and Julian did glance around to make sure no one was around before he input the code for the door and walked in.

 Once the door closed behind him, Garak pushed off his hood, dropped his bag near the couch, and went over to the replicator. “Rokassa juice and hamok stew.”

 “I take it you won’t be opening your shop,” Julian teased as Garak took his meal to the table. He ordered his own meal and joined him.

 “As far as everyone else knows, we are supposed to be in quarantine,” Garak reminded. “Although I will sneak in to get something to work on.”

 “Sneaking into your own shop,” Julian lightly laughed around a mouthful of lasagna. “Don’t think I could pull that off with the Infimary. Otherwise I could continue some of my research between trying to figure out what happened to us.”

 Garak grinned, and ate a spoonful of stew. “Perhaps I could be of service?”

 Julian took a moment to realize what the slightly devious expression meant. “Oh no, do not hack into my research files, for any reason.”

 “Doctor!” That familiar word and manner of saying it sounded off with a child’s voice. “Why must you jump to that conclusion?”

 “Because I know you.” Julian shook his head. “Besides, do you really want to spend this time in Odo’s holding cells or confined to your quarters?”

 “Hm… fair enough. Your research files are safe… for now.” Garak let out a sigh. “You know, there is one possible upside if we are stuck like this.”

 “Oh? What’s that?”

 “In the chance of any more assassins coming after me, I have quite the disguise.”

 Julian laughed. “I guess that would be very useful in the off-chance any more do come for you. Speaking of, what are the chances of that?”

 Garak shrugged. “I have no idea, though I would hazard to say very little.”

 Julian knew what the Cardassian wasn’t mentioning, and simply nodded.

 They finished the meal in companionable quiet, both contemplating what their lives could be if they were stuck in these child bodies and had to naturally grow back up. They recycled the dishes, then replicated a pajama set, plain and basic as with any clothes available via replicator.  

 Once changed and in his bedroom, Julian reached up to the shelf where his teddy bear always sat, and took him down. Garak walked in to find his partner sitting on the edge of the bed, clutching Kukulala to his chest. For a second, he forgot this was Julian, and simply saw am unsure child seeking comfort. Then he shook his head and saw the man he loved in that.

 “My dear?” Garak softly said.

 Julian’s head snapped up, eyes wide and seeming even larger on his face than normal. The endearment from Garak in that voice startled him. He cleared his throat a little. “Sorry… yes?”

 Garak took a couple steps forward. “You just looked… so vulnerable.”

 “I could say the same of you,” Julian replied with a watery smile. “Comes with looking like a child, I suppose.” He glanced down and kissed the top of the bear’s head. As explanation for Kukalaka, he said, “It just felt like I should hold him… I don’t know…”

 Garak sat beside Julian and slid an arm around his lower back. “I think we could both use some sleep.” He patted Kukalaka’s arm. “He can stay with us.”

 “Sleep…” Julian yawned. “What a great idea right now.”

 It was strange to have so much space left in the bed after they had settled in the center of it. They lay of their sides facing each other, one of Julian’s legs draped over Garak’s, and Garak’s arm on Julian’s waist. Kukalaka was between their chests, held tightly in Julian’s arm.

 Garak scooted forward slightly to press their foreheads together for a few seconds. He pulled away to Julian’s sleepy smile. At the soft, “Goodnight, Elim,” Garak let his eyes close.

 ********

 “You can come in,” Kira said to Odo as the door to her quarters slid open. She dropped her bag near the replicator and stared at it. “Relieved of duty until we get changed back.” She looked up to Odo, standing near the sofa. “What am I supposed to do until then?”

 “Anything not related to your official duties?” Odo suggested.

 “Very funny,” Kira snorted. She stalked over to the couch, crossed her arms, and plopped down. She forgot her size change and ended up leaning too far back into the cushions. With a frustrated huff, she scooted herself back so that she wasn’t sliding off. With a head tilt, she gestured for Odo to join her. “I’m serious, Odo.”

 Odo sat next to the girl, unable to stop himself from staring down at her, like he had the entire way to her quarters. He forced himself to look down at his hands instead. “As long as it’s nothing breaking any laws or being a risk to security, you can do whatever you like.”

 “That’s not really helpful…” Kira sighed. A sudden humorless laugh barked out. “This is ridiculous! I’m a ten-year-old child… my body anyway. No one will take me seriously if I am stuck like this.”

 “You can take some comfort in knowing you’re not the first this has happened to. Mrs O’Brien and whoever else from the Enterprise managed until they were changed back.”

 “That doesn’t make this any less ridiculous.” Kira lifted her hand and stared at the fingers.

 “No, it doesn’t,” the Changeling agreed. “I would offer you to assist me in my duties, but-“

 “The sight of a child sitting in your office with you would attract attention, and questions,” Kira finished.

 “Unfortunately.”

“It’s alright. I’m sure I’ll find something to occupy my time.” Kira ran a hand over her face as her mouth opened in a yawn. Without thinking, she keeled over until her head was on Odo’s thigh and her legs swung up on the couch to stretch out.

 Odo flinched at the unexpected movement, and he gazed down at the side of her head. “Kira?”

 The Bajoran slightly lifted her head. “Sorry, I didn’t think. Is this… okay? I mean, I just felt…”

 Odo’s hand awkwardly patted her side. “It’s fine. Unexpected, but fine.”

 Kira settled back down and relaxed, the thigh of Changeling feeling warm and comfortable. “Thanks. You can be quite a soothing presence.”

 Odo softly harrumphed. “Don’t let anyone else know. Then we’ll both have a problem with being taken seriously.”

 “What a pair we’d make, then,” Kira laughed. She bent her knees, and smiled at the way Odo left his hand on her side, large and comforting. She felt so small and prone, and was grateful for his company. She briefly wondered if being transformed into a child also loosened her inhibitions, letting herself use Odo’s leg as a pillow like this. But she dispelled that thought, because Odo was fine with it, and they weren’t in public.

She felt exhaustion wash over her, and her eyes fluttered closed. The last thing she was very dimly aware of was Odo’s hand on her side spreading out into a blanket.

 ********

 Sisko drummed his fingers on his thigh as he and Jadzia waited for Jake to come home. He had gone over in his head how best to explain this to Jake, and couldn’t figure out one way to make it not sound like a joke. He hoped his son would recognize him enough to take it seriously.

 Thankfully, it was only another minute until the door opened to Jake coming in. “Oh, hey, Dax,” he greeted. “Dad was supposed to come home from…” he noticed the child sitting next to the Trill. “Hello?”

 Jadzia hid the small smile on her face. “Your father did come back from Bajor, yes.”

 Jake’s gaze went back to her. “Is he here?”

 Sisko looked up to Jadzia, seeing the corner of her mouth twitch. She still found this somewhat amusing.

 “He’s in quarantine, but-“

 “Quarantine? For what?”

 Jadzia raised a hand to calm the teen. “That’s the official story. You see… they all did arrive safely, but in a… different condition.”

 Jake glanced between Jadzia and the boy next to her a few times, completely confused. Sisko could see the gears turning in his son’s head at trying to figure this out.

 Jake blew out a breath. “Just tell me where my dad is and what’s going on with him.”

 “He’s right here,” Jadzia said simply.

 Jake’s brow raised, and he called out as though Sisko was in his bedroom.

 “I meant right here in front of you,” Jadzia added.

 “Hey, Jake-o,” Sisko finally greeted.

 Jake’s jaw dropped at the familiar greeting from the not-at-all familiar voice. He quickly gathered his wits. “Is this some kind of joke? You picked up a kid and are using him to play a joke on me.”

 “It’s no joke,” Jadzia assured.

 “While it is a thing Dax might do, this isn’t a prank,” Sisko said.

 Jake stared at Sisko for a long moment. He bit his lip. “You do… you do look like him…”

 It was obvious Jake needed more convincing, and Sisko picked up the padd next to him and handed it to Jake. On the screen was an old photo of him at around the age of twelve with his father in front of the restaurant.

 Jake’s gaze flickered from the padd to the boy several times. Finally, he said, “You cannot be serious… what happened?” He sat on the floor in mild shock.

 Sisko couldn’t help the smile as his son accepted who he was.

 “We’re not sure what happened.” Jadzia replied. “All we know for certain is that something hit their runabout, and Benjamin, Kira, Julian, and Garak came out of it like this.”

 “You mean… all four of you are kids?”

 “Only physically,” Sisko clarified. “We’re all still perfectly fine up here.” He tapped his temple.

 “Well,” Jake blew a breath through his nose. “That’s a good thing.” He looked down at the photo again. “Please tell me you can be changed back.”

 “We need time to figure out what happened in the first place,” Sisko explained, getting off the couch to sit on his knees in front of Jake. He sighed and shook his head. “I know that, until we do, this’ll be an adjustment.”

 “I’ll say.”

 “And I doubt you’ll be able to take me seriously as your father. It’s difficult enough for me to take myself seriously.”

 Jake wisely didn’t respond to that. Instead, he looked up to Jadzia. “What was that about an official story about them being quarantined?”

 “We don’t want this getting out. That’s a cover story why no one will see them out and about,” Jadzia answered.

 “Right… I suppose it is,” Jake muttered.

 “That means you can’t tell anyone, either. Even Nog,” Sisko stated.

 “He’d think I was joking and wouldn’t believe me, anyway. So… are you relieved of duty or something?”

 Sisko nodded. “Until we can figure out a way to fix this.”

 Jake frowned. “But… what if you can’t?”

 “Let’s not go down that road yet,” Jadzia warned.

 Sisko reached out to pat Jake’s forearm. “If it comes to that, we’ll discuss it then.” As Jake looking into his eyes, he saw that the teen now fully believed it. He let out an undignified squeak as Jake suddenly shot forward and pulled him into a hug. He heard Jadzia chuckle above them, and bit back his response to her. Instead, he wrapped his arms around his now much taller son, and with a kiss to his cheek, said into his ear. “I’m alright… I’ll be back to normal eventually.”

 Jadzia excused herself and left the two entangled in their embrace.


	4. Chapter 4

 “Oh no…” Julian groaned as he got dressed the next morning. He and Garak had just finished breakfast a few minutes before.

 “What?”

 Julian raised a hand and watched as it started to slightly shake. “I didn’t think about that…”

 “The coffee you had?” Garak guessed, drying his hair.

 “The amount I usually have,” the Human nodded. “Too much for my size.” He sighed and pulled on his trousers.

 “You won’t become sick from it, will you?”

 “Oh no, at least I hope not. I’ll just be… jittery and hyper until it wears off.” Julian finished dressing and answered the chirping call of his computer. “Bashir here.”

 “Morning. Julian, those scan results from yesterday have all processed, if you would like to come take a look,” Jadzia’s voice said.

 “I’ll be there shortly,” Julian responded. “See you soon.”

 As Julian ended the call, Garak remarked, “Oh, good, that means I won’t be with you while you’re overly hyper from caffeine.” The Cardassian considered the other boy, who was now bouncing on his toes. “Although, it’s not a fate I’d wish on anyone. Give my condolences to Lieutenant Dax.”

 Julian narrowed his eyes. “Very funny.” He managed to stand still long enough to look in the mirror and brush his hair into a semi-neat state. It was quite strange to see himself as what he had looked like about twenty years ago. “And what will you be doing?”

 “Working on some clothes.”

 Julian smiled. “Do try to stay out of trouble.”

 “Trouble? What kind of trouble do you think I would get into?”

 “I don’t know, but I’m sure you could think of something. Not that you would tell me, of course.” Julian leaned in for a kiss, which felt strange when Garak responded with a chaste one.

 Garak pulled away with an equally confused expression, which he quickly masked with a grin. “Of course. Now, go to the science labs before you get any more hyperactive in my presence.”

 “Alright, alright, I’m going,” Julian affectionately rolled his eyes, his fingers tapping against his leg. “Ass.”

 “Eloquent as ever, my dear,” Garak called out after him. When the door closed behind Julian, he straightened up the bed and placed Kukalaka against the pillows. Then he pulled the hood of his jacket up and headed out.

 

 Julian was skipping by the time he reached the science lab to meet Jadzia, something which she immediately noticed.

 “Well, aren’t you chipper about this situation,” Jadzia remarked with a grin.

 “Not at all. Caffeine high.”

 “Oh, I see. Then I expect Benjamin and Kira will be experiencing something similar right now as well.” Jadzia beckoned for Julian to come sit next to her at the computer.

 Julian sat in the offered chair, but was only able to sit still for a few seconds before he stood and kicked it out of the way. He couldn’t stop one foot from tapping the point of his toes against the floor. “Computer, show the results of the DNA scans of subject Bashir.” After a moment of looking through the images and text, he looked at his RNA scan. Then he went through Sisko’s, Kira’s, and Garak’s.

 Jadzia returned to her chair with a cup of juice. “So does the Chief’s suggestion have any result?”

 Julian glanced through his results again. “No. I don’t see any type of discrepancy with that. Which is a shame, because then we’d know how to fix this.”

 “O’Brien should be here a little later with scans from the runabout. Then we can really start making theories.”

 “I’ll keep looking through the other medical results. Computer, bring up…”

 ********

 Sisko cracked another egg on the griddle and added some pepper and chopped onions to it. He wiped his hand on the apron, which was at the end of the counter instead of on him, otherwise he would trip over it.

 “Smells good, dad,” came Jake’s voice as the teen emerged from his room.

 Sisko turned to him in time to see the grimace before Jake corrected, “I mean… Ben.” They had discussed this the evening before, deciding Jake calling him “dad” felt too strange for them both. He could tell that Jake had automatically called him that before seeing his child form at the cooking station.  

 “Have a seat,” Sisko replied. “Should be ready soon.”

 Jake didn’t take a seat at the table, instead choosing to hover nearby in case Sisko needed help. Sisko didn’t say anything or insist, though he was glad that Jake didn’t physically try to butt in or take over. It had taken him a little time to get used to cooking in his new size, but he had the hang of it now.

 Sisko grabbed a plate and started to lift a finished omelet from the grill with the spatula. He let out a breath of frustrated as the egg slid to the back of the grill and he couldn’t reach it. Wordlessly, Jake grabbed the apron and used it to protect his hand as he pulled the grill closer and held it still.

 “Thanks,” Sisko said as the omelets and sausages made it onto their plates.

 “So, how was the political conference?” Jake asked to start a conversation as they sat.

 “Oh, nothing too exciting, although…”

 ********

 Kira lowered her chin to rest on her hands on the railing. She watched the people below go about their business on the Promenade, not really focused on any of them in particular.

 She jumped a few minutes later at the gruff throat-clearing behind her. She turned to find Odo standing there, hands clasped behind his back and staring down at her.

 “Usually I’m telling Jake and Nog to stop dangling over the Promenade,” the Changeling said with a small affectionate grin.

 Kira looked down to her feet, swinging in the open air. She stopped them and stood up, sheepishly smiling at Odo. “Sorry.”

 “Well, as long as you’re not dropping seeds on people’s heads or anything, I won’t write you up,” Odo teased.

 Kira shrugged. “Although now I do see the appeal in why they sit like that.”

 “Anything of particular interest?” Odo asked as they walked across the bridge to the outer windows.

 “Not really. I also now see their interest in people-watching.” Kira let out a sigh as they stopped and she looked out at the stars. “I don’t suppose Dax and O’Brien have already found an answer.”

 “Not that I’m aware of.”

 Kira made a little humming sound, which turned into a quiet melody. She noticed the way Odo looked at her and asked, “What?”

 “You were… humming something.”

 “Oh… I suppose I was,” the Bajoran replied in a tone that suggested she wouldn’t say any more about it. It had been a tune she hadn’t thought about for years, to the point she was surprised she even remembered it. “Any reports of weird children unsettling people or causing trouble?”

 “Other than the one dangling over the Promenade a moment ago?”

 “She must be quite the troublemaker,” Kira said with a laugh.

 “Quite the handful, sometimes. I did see a small Cardassian sneak into Garak’s shop a little earlier. I don’t think anyone else noticed, which is good for him.”

 “Probably decided to work on a shirt or something. He has a way to be productive while we’re like this.”

 “Who’s to say you all have to be productive?” Odo asked.

 “I would prefer to be productive. Being a child is not really something I want to revisit for long. I wasn’t exactly carefree back then.”

 “No… I suppose not.”

 They stood in quiet for a couple of minutes, before a chirping sound came from Kira’s pocket. She glanced around and turned her body to the window completely before taking her commbadge from her trousers pocket. “Kira here.”

 “I’ve finished scanning the runabout,” said Miles’ voice. “If you want to be in the science lab when we go over it. We’ve already called the commander in, as well.”

 “I’ll be right there,” Kira responded.

 Odo tapped his badge and said that he would be joining them as well.

 “Here’s hoping we get some answers,” Kira muttered.

 ********

 Garak finished the final embroidered line on the suit for a Tellarite customer and put it away. It had taken him a short while to get used to the size of his hands, but had quickly adjusted, and was glad to not have made any simple mistakes because of it. Although it had led to more than a few accidental stabs with the embroidery needle.

 He glanced over to the computer, displaying the time. It was close enough to lunch time, and he did feel hungry, more so than usual at this time. He turned off the light of his back room, which wouldn’t be seen outside the shop, and made his way through the dark main area. He pulled up his hood, waited a moment for a group of people to pass, then exited and locked his shop.

 Garak decided to go to his quarters and eat there. Then he got the urge to have a glass of kanar and practically forgot about his condition. He didn’t have any bottles in his quarters, and it wasn’t on his replicator menu. Logically, he had to go to Quark’s. One glass, and he would be on his way.

 His first sign to forget the endeavor should have been when he was nearly bowled over by a rowdy patron leaving the bar, something which wouldn’t have happened if he were an adult. The second sign was when he had to make an effort to sit properly on a bar stool, and his feet didn’t touch the floor.

 Quark came over. “And what can I get…” His eyes widened, but he quickly recovered. “A juice or other nonalcoholic beverage?”

 “Glass of kanar.”

 “Sorry, kid, I can’t serve you that.” The Ferengi looked around. “Rokassa juice or something else?”

 “I said kanar.”

 “I don’t know what your parents let you have, but I can’t serve alcohol to minors. Speaking of, where are they? I didn’t hear of any Cardassians coming to the station today. Unless you’re one of those adopted by Bajorans?”

 “That is none of your business.” Garak put on his best annoyed and intimidating expression.

 “Really? I’d say it is when a Cardassian boy is trying to buy kanar from me.”  Quark chuckled. “That won’t work on me, but aren’t you just the most adorable thing I’ve seen today.”

 “Adorable?” Garak asked, incredulous. Was there any way to be dignified in his condition, or was he doomed to people thinking and calling him adorable and variations thereof the entire time? No, that wouldn’t do at all.

 “Yes, the way your face is scrunched up like that, and-“

 Garak put his palms on the counter to push himself up and to lean over the bar slightly to become more intimidating. Unfortunately, he forgot his feet didn’t reach the floor, and ended up knocking the stool out from under him and falling. A yelp escaped his mouth from surprise. His face smashed into the counter on the way down, and he ended up on his side, clutching his nose and cheek. Pain blossomed, along with something warm into his hands.

 Garak opened his eyes and pulled his hands away just enough to see that the liquid in his hands was blood, which was coming from his nose. Then he quickly covered his face again, putting pressure on his nose to stop the bleeding.

 “Are you alright?” came Quark’s concerned voice, which was suddenly right above Garak.

 Garak shrugged off the Ferengi’s hand and pushed himself up to his knees. He rapidly blinked.

 “Here,” Quark shoved a cloth napkin into Garak’s face. “I can’t have a child bleeding all over the floor. Makes me look bad.”

 “We can’t have that,” Garak retorted thickly, taking the napkin and holding it tightly over his nose. With his other hand, he reached up to the counter to pull himself the rest of the way up to his feet.

 “You’re going to the infirmary,” Quark said, waving down a waiter to take the boy.

 “No,” Garak protested. That was the last thing he needed.

 “Sure, bleed all yourself, then.” Quark replied sarcastically.

 “Elim! There you are!”

 Garak’s head snapped up, and he instantly regretted the ache that flared in his neck from the movement.

 “What happened?” asked the Human boy when he reached Garak and Quark.

 “He fell off the stool. I’m having him taken to the infirmary… Danek, put down that tray and get over here!”

 “Oh… there’s no need, Mr Quark. I’ll take him there.” Julian replied, putting an arm around Garak’s back.

 Garak didn’t protest, already feeling uncomfortable at the stares on them with the attention they had attracted.

 “Come on, Elim.” Julian led him out the door, and headed in the direction of the infirmary.

 Garak sighed, and grimaced at the blood the trickled into his mouth. He prepared himself for being prodded at by a nurse. But then Julian turned them away and into the direction of the habitat ring. “I thought-“

 “I have a medkit in my quarters, unless you have a serious injury?”

 “Just my nose… and my dignity,” Garak said, his voice slightly muffled through the napkin.

 “Good. We really shouldn’t be making trips to the infirmary, if we’re supposed to be in quarantine. There’s the chance we could get recognized by DNA or something there.” Julian gently pulled Garak’s head slightly back. “Keep it there.”

 “You do have a point.”

 “Are you going to tell me what that was about?”

 “When my nose stops hurting so much.”

 Julian shook his head and murmured, “You would somehow get yourself into trouble. I told you so.”

 Garak narrowed his eyes and glared over to the Human boy, but didn’t say anything.

 Once in Julian’s quarters, Julian pushed Garak down onto the sofa, and grabbed the medkit case from the desk. He opened the case, placed it next to Garak, and stood close and looking down at the Cardassian. “Alright, let me see.”

 Garak took away the bloody napkin and let Julian work.

 “Nothing broken. So, what were you doing in Quark’s?” Julian asked after a moment.

 Garak’s nose twitched as Julian touched his cheek and started working on repairing the damage. “I was hungry.”

 “And…?” Julian prompted.

 “I wanted more than just food.”

 “Did you seriously…” Julian started laughing.

 “I don’t see what’s so funny about this.”

 “You went to get a glass of kanar, didn’t you.”

 Garak sighed, and Julian had to move his head back into a better position. “The important part is that I fell off the stool, as Quark said.”

 “What caused you to do that?” At Garak’s mumble, Julian said, “I didn’t catch that.”

 “When he refused to serve me kanar, I tried to intimidate him into it.”

 Julian bit his lip in a fruitless attempt to stop the giggle.

 “If you’re going to keep laughing, I’ll stop talking.”

 “No, no, I’m listening,” Julian cleared his throat, and got to work on the bruising grey cheek.

 “He called me adorable, and I had to protest that assessment.”

 Julian bit his lip again, and managed to hold the laugh in for a few seconds. Then he fell onto the sofa and let it out.

 “I’m so glad this amuses you.”

 “I’m sorry,” Julian sat up to finish healing the other boy’s face. “It’s just that now I’m imagining it, and it’s… well, adorable.”

 Garak shot an annoyed look at Julian. At the sight of Julian only grinning a little more at it, he dropped it to a more neutral expression.

 Julian put the equipment back into the case. “There, all done. Now, no more going to Quark’s for kanar. The last thing I need to deal with is a drunk Cardassian child.”

 “I thought you were relieved of duty, Doctor,” Garak teased.

 “The last thing my medical staff needs to deal with is a drunk Cardassian child. Although it might be the highlight of their day.”

 Garak got up and ordered a meal from the replicator. “How is the research into what happened to us going?”

 Julian followed suit and sat at the table with his own lunch. “We’ve ruled out a few things…”

 A few minutes later, they were interrupted by the door chime. Julian got up, but hesitated to answer it until Odo’s voice came through the door to ask if Garak was with him.

 Julian let the door open and Odo walk in. As soon as the door closed, Odo looked straight to the Cardassian.

 “What can I do for you, Constable?”

 “I just heard the most fascinating tale from Quark. Apparently, a short time ago, a Cardassian child tried to order kanar from him and wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

 Garak stalked over to the Changeling. “Yes, yes, and I learned my lesson through nearly breaking my nose.” He made a sweeping gesture to the door. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m eating lunch.”

 “Consider this a warning, Garak. For all intents and purposes, you are a child while in public.”

 “Duly noted.” Garak made the gesture with his arm again.

 Odo looked to Julian who only shrugged and nodded. “Very well. Good day, gentlemen.”

 Julian watched silently, having to put his hand over his mouth, at the sight of Garak staring impatiently and huffing as the constable left. It was just so very funny, the Cardassian acting and speaking like he normally would as he tried to passive-aggressively bully Odo out. Quark had it right when he called Garak adorable.

 Garak turned. “Now, Julian, what were you saying… what?”

 Julian couldn’t hold it in anymore and collapsed to the couch in a fit of giggles.


	5. Chapter 5

 The ball bounced back off the wall, and Kira pounced to the side to hit it with her paddle. She hit it another four times before the holosuite door opening distracted her, and the ball sailed over her head. Kira turned with a huff of frustration to find Jadzia standing there, the door closing behind her.

 “Evening, Nerys,” Jadzia greeted with a smile, her hands behind her back. “How’s it going?”

 “How does it look like it’s going? I’m still a child.” Kira let out a breath. “Sorry, that was rude.”

 “That’s alright. Let me try again. How’s the springball going?”

 The Bajoran girl shook her head. “The answer is still the same. I thought this would help me vent. But there’s some frustration with it because I’m constantly being reminded of the situation.”

 “Having trouble hitting the ball?” Jadzia asked.

 “A lot more than usual. Hits I know I should be able to do, I can’t.”

 “Because of the size difference.”

 “Exactly.”

 “Well, you’re not the only one having trouble.”

 “I’d assume not.”

 “Did you hear about Garak?” Jadzia’s mouth twisted into an amused smile.

 “No. What happened?”

 “Nearly broke his nose while trying to order a drink from Quark. Fell off the stool, from what I understand.”

 Kira couldn’t help the little laugh at the Cardassian’s expense. When it died down, she bounced the ball on the floor a few times. Then she looked up to the other woman. She needed to do something to keep venting her frustrations, and she suddenly didn’t want to be alone while she did so. “Want to play?”

 “Hm… I’m more a bat’leth kind of girl, but I’m sure I can figure out a paddle.” As the computer materialized a paddle, Jadzia teased, “Is this a way to make yourself feel better, by playing against someone who hasn’t before?”

 Kira grinned. “Maybe.”

 ********

 The ball came back down, straight to Sisko’s slightly raised hand. He threw it up again, watching the way it turned in the air before he caught it again. It had been so long since his hand was this size around a baseball. He turned it over in his hands, staring up at the ceiling from his position on his back on the sofa.

 The front door slid open as he threw the ball into the air again. “Hey… Ben,” greeted Jake.

 “Jake-o,” Sisko replied quietly.

 Jake leaned over the back of the sofa, just aside from the ball’s vertical path. “What are you thinking about?”

 “Hm?”

 “You’re playing with a baseball, so you’re thinking.”

 “Oh, yes… I was just… thinking about what would happen if we can’t find a way to turn us back into adults.”

 Jake’s eyes followed the path of the ball as it went up and down. “I thought you said you weren’t going to think about that until you knew for sure.”

 “I did say that.” Sisko caught the ball again, then looked up to his son. “But, it is quite hard not to think about it.”

 “I imagine so,” Jake muttered. “So, reach any conclusions, then?”

 Sisko let out a sigh and sat up. “I don’t know. I mean, I would obviously have to leave Starfleet until I’ve grown up enough to be reinstated. And even then, it would be a while until anyone could take me seriously as a commander.”

 “What would you do until then? Stay on the station? Go back to Earth?”

 “That’s the part I don’t know. There’s certainly enough for me to keep myself occupied until I’m old enough to be a commander again.”

 Jake joined the boy on the couch. “Maybe… you could open up a restaurant on Bajor.”

 “Bajor?”

 “Grandpa wouldn’t like the competition on Earth,” Jake teased.

 “No, I suppose he wouldn’t,” Sisko laughed. “What do you think the chances are of Bajorans getting into Creole food?”

 “Don’t know until you try… although you could test it out here on the station first.”

 “Sounds like a plan,” Sisko smiled. “Are you volunteering to help?”

 “Maybe.”

 “It was your idea.”

 “Doesn’t necessarily mean I’m volunteering,” Jake teased.

 “We’ll see about that,” Sisko responded with a push against the teen’s arm. He tossed up the baseball again. “What do you say to some catch in the holosuite?”

 “Sure thing, let me go get my mitt.”

 ********

 Kira and Jadzia leaned back against the wall and slid down to the floor, both exhausted and sweating.

 “You did pretty well,” Kira complimented, getting her breath back. She looked over the woman with a side-glance. “Are you sure you’ve never played this before?”

 “Emony was the athletic one, and she played something similar enough at school.”

 Kira’s eyes narrowed. “Isn’t that cheating?”

 Jadzia shrugged. “I haven’t played anything similar, and I’m not Emony, so… I wouldn’t say it’s cheating.”

 “Right. Well, I’ll remember that for next time.”

 They sat in companionable quiet for a moment. Then Kira asked, “If this is permanent, I don’t know what to do.”

 Jadzia took a long minute to think through her reply. “As someone who has memories of several childhoods, you’re in quite the unique situation. I’d say to treasure it.”

 “Treasure it?”

 “Use the time to your advantage to explore things you didn’t get the chance to in your… first childhood.”

 Kira thought for a moment, bouncing the ball of the floor to her hand repeatedly. “I don’t know if there’s anything I would want to explore that I think I missed out on, other than the entire idea of a childhood.”

 “I’m sure there’s something. You don’t have to think of it right now.”

 “Jadzia… I started fighting in the Resistance near this age.”

 “Exactly. You would have a chance to do something else. Anything else. Art, music, sports, academic research… the possibilities are endless. And then, when you’re old enough again, you can resume your position in the militia, if you still want to.”

 “I’d have to find something to do until then, anyway.”

 “Precisely, so why not something for your own enjoyment?”

 Kira let out a sigh. “As much sense as you’re making, I hope this doesn’t make you not keep up trying to figure out how to fix this.”

 “Oh, of course not. It would be a shame to lose a talented station commander, first officer, and chief medical officer… and a talented tailor.”

 Kira chuckled at the mention of Garak.

 “We have a very good team here. I’d hate to lose it. All I’m saying is that this doesn’t have to be a completely negative experience for the rest of you if we can’t fix it.”

 “Look for silver linings, you mean.”

 “Yes. You might as well. It beats being miserable until you grow up again.”

 Kira bit her lip and stared down at the ball in her hand. “I guess… I never really thought about what I wanted as a child. I wonder what Sisko and Bashir would do with this time.”

 “Julian might join some junior tennis league. Benjamin… it would be a waste if he didn’t do something with his cooking,” Jadzia replied lightly.

 “Yeah…” Kira said softly. Then she stood up and stretched. “Thanks for the workout, and the talk.”

 Jadzia pushed herself to her feet. “Anytime, Nerys.”

 ********

 Julian ordered a beverage from the replicator and went to sit back down on the sofa. Garak recognized the drink as a Human caffeinated one, and got up to intercept him. He grabbed the cup from Julian’s hand, and managed to hold him back as he put it back in the replicator to be recycled.

 “Hey, what was that for?” Julian protested as he watched the soda disappear.

 “You are not getting any more caffeine today.”

 “Oh, and who are you to tell me that?” Julian narrowed his eyes.

 “The person who will kick you out if you get another caffeine high while in a child’s body.”

 “Says the one who tried to get alcohol,” Julian muttered. “Besides, you can’t kick me out of my quarters.”

 Garak grinned. “Doesn’t mean I couldn’t try.”

 Julian lips formed into a pout, and he widened his eyes to add to the effect.

 Garak shook his head. “Oh, don’t give me that. It’s already bad enough on your adult face.”

 “And what does that mean?”

 “It means, my dear, that you can already be quite difficult to resist.” Garak went back the couch, picked up the padd with the book he was reading, and sat.

 Julian huffed and stared at the child Garak, calmly going back to reading. He stomped over to the arm of the couch, turned around, and jumped up a little to drape himself backwards over it and onto the couch. Garak looked down at him, an eyeridge slightly raised at the behavior. Julian ignored it, dug his own padd out from under his back, and started reading as well.

 After a few minutes of reading the same paragraph several times, Julian said, “Elim.” But the Cardassian seemed to engrossed in his novel to respond. “Elim,” he tried again, raising his voice a little. With his child voice, he knew it came off as more whiny than anything, but that didn’t stop him. “Elim…”

 Julian’s eyes narrowed as Garak didn’t even glance over at him. He knew he was ignoring him on purpose. Julian scooted up the length of the sofa until the top of his head bumped against the other boy’s thigh.

 Garak still ignored him, and Julian wasn’t going to stand for this. He raised his head and scooted more, until his head was in Garak’s lap and he was staring up at him. “Elim…”

 That finally got a reaction from Garak, and he held his padd against his chest to look down at the Human. “Yes? Please don’t tell me you got a sugar high or something.”

 “I don’t want to read right now.”

 “Oh? Well, I do. So if you’ll let me-“

 “Do you think I could still be a doctor like this?” Julian blurted out what had been on his mind the past several minutes.

 “Well… I think you’d be a good hit with child patients, looking like one yourself.”

 Julian furrowed his brow at the idea. “I suppose I would, yeah. Maybe I could be a pediatrician until I look too old to keep that appeal. Although convincing parents that I am a licensed and experienced doctor would be a problem…” He started thinking through ways to get around that issue.

 “Is that all you wanted my attention for?”

 “What are you going to do if this is permanent?”

 “I haven’t come to a decision yet.”

 “So brainstorm with me.”

 “I’d much rather read right now.” Garak brought his padd back to eye-level.

 After a moment, Julian suddenly grabbed the other’s padd and held it tightly to his chest.

 “Really?” Garak asked.

 “You took away my soda.”

 “And you said I can’t have kanar.”

 “That’s for your own good.”

 “So was that.”

 “Well, I don’t want to read right now.”

 “That doesn’t mean I can’t. Give it back, Julian.”

 A wide grin spread across Julian’s face, and he shook his head.

 “Really, this is quite-“

 “Childish? I know, but look at us.”

 Garak sighed, and made a grab for the padd. Julian clutched it tighter and rolled away, which meant rolling completely off of the couch. Garak remarked, “I hope you haven’t hurt yourself.”

 “Nope.” Julian’s hand reached up to grab his padd off the couch so that Garak couldn’t read from that one, either. “You want to read, you’ll have to get these from me.”

 Garak couldn’t stop the short laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation before he relented and pounced down on top of Julian, taking on the challenge.


	6. Chapter 6

 Two days passed. There was a little progress on O’Brien’s part, having finally found something odd with the runabout. Unfortunately, it hadn’t led to an instant understanding to what had happened and how to fix it. By this point, the four who had been turned into children were really starting to become frustrated. For his own sanity as well as theirs, Sisko had scheduled all of them and Jake to a baseball program in the holosuite.

 There had been a little grumbling from Kira and Garak about going, claiming not understanding anything about the sport to actually be able to enjoy themselves. It didn’t take much to convince them, because it would be something to do. Sisko assured that it wouldn’t be anything too strenuous, only friendly catch with each other.

 Kira went with Sisko and Jake, through the main way to the holosuites through Quark’s bar. Garak had insisted on following a few minutes later from the upper level, not wanting anyone who had been around when he had attempted to order kanar to obviously see him and perhaps call security. Julian had sighed and decided to accompany him.

 Now all five of them were throwing baseballs around, the field set at early evening lighting, mostly for Garak’s benefit. For a good while, they managed to focus enough on throwing and catching balls, with only a few instances of getting minorly hit with the ball (including one where Garak swore to Julian that Kira had purposely tried to aim for his face). In all honesty, it was a nice outing for them all.

 It wasn’t until they left at the end of the allotted time, and they were heading out onto the Promenade that Jake realized how much he looked like a babysitter taking his charges out. Who would trust him with two Humans, a Bajoran, and a Cardassian children he didn’t know. At least he hadn’t come across Nog any time he’d been out with his de-aged father, because he wasn’t sure if he would be able to stick to the story he had thought of to tell anyone who asked.

 The group was heading to the Replimat for a snack together, when the sounds and lights for a red alert came on. The first instinct of the Starfleet and Militia officers was to start heading to Ops, but they all stopped themselves very quickly. Julian and Kira looked to Sisko for instruction. Sisko glanced around, tugging on his ear as he thought.

 Jake bit his lip and looked around, having a higher vantage point than the others. His eyes widened as he saw a group of people, from a race he’d never seen before, materialize in the middle of the Promenade. Garak noticed him staring and followed his eyeline, catching a glimpse through a break in the regular daytime crowd, which quickly turned to panic as the sounds and lights of phaser fire went off.

 Jake and Garak grabbed the other three. Sisko made the decision, “Habitat Ring. We can’t be trapped on the Promenade.”

 The decision was made not a moment too soon, with the invaders starting to round up people on the Promenade into the various shops and restaurants. One advantage of their smaller sizes was the ability to duck between people and not be seen more easily.

 Kira’s instinct was to try to fight, and she had to force it down. She had nothing to fight with, and she was too small to throw any effective punches or kicks, if she could even get a chance at one of the invaders. Still it was very difficult to tamp down the memories of being this size during the Cardassian Occupation, and her desire to fight was just as strong now as it was then.

 But Sisko was right. They couldn’t fight back here and now. They had to escape the throng, get somewhere safe, and come up with a proper plan. Then there was the other reason Kira managed to dissuade her fighting instincts, one that she wouldn’t admit to the others. She was afraid. It was hard not to be, being forced to look up at panicking people and invaders trying to round them all up.

 A Bajoran man grabbed her arm, with an invitation of, “Come with me, child. I’ll keep you safe.”

 Kira yanked away as the man’s grip was weakened by someone else bumping into him. She panicked for a second when she realized she had lost sight of the others. But then Sisko’s voice called out loudly enough to be heard over the other sounds, “This way, Nerys!” With a direction, she pushed between two Starfleet officers, and around another person, letting out a sigh of relief as she saw the taller form of Jake ahead.

 Kira ran faster to catch up, dodging a pair of alien hands making a grab for her. Once a good distance away from the confusion of the Promenade, they turned a corner and leaned back against the wall to catch their breath.

 The respite only lasted a few seconds before they heard voices coming their way, calling out to search the area. Sisko said, “Come on, my quarters are closest.” With a quick nod, they were off running again.

 “Stop there!” someone shouted barely a few seconds later.

 They didn’t stop at the command, but the phaser shot that sent sparks off the wall beside Garak made them reconsider and comply. They all stopped and turned.

 Three of the aliens, pale-skinned with warpaint-like tattoos adorning their faces, approached them. “Where do you think you are running off to?” one of them demanded, addressing Jake.

Jake protectively took a step forward and to the side to shield the other four. He stammered, “G-going home. Where… where else would we go?”

 “You were trying to escape,” the alien stated. “You are all coming back with us to the… shop area.” He made a grab for Jake’s shoulder.

 Jake stepped back and protested, “But we’re just kids!” His tongue nervously darted out. “I-I’m the oldest and… you see, I-I’m in charge of them while their parents are away on a trip. I would… would really hate if they came back and their children have been hurt and I would be responsible for it and-“ Jake couldn’t avoid being grabbed this time and was yanked forward.

 Sisko pounced at the large man. “Let him go! Don’t treat him like that!”

 One of the other beings shoved Sisko away with little effort. Suddenly a loud wail sounded, and everyone stopped at the unexpected sound. It was quickly followed by another, and they all looked to the source of it.

 Julian stood there, eyes wide and shining, somehow seeming larger than they already were. His body shook as he inhaled a shuddering breath and the exhale came out more as a whimper. He blinked, and a couple of tears ran down his cheeks. “I just want to go home!” he sobbed.

 Garak recovered first from the startling sight, and pulled Julian into a hug from the side, glaring daggers at the people threatening them.

 “Please!” Julian looked up to the three invaders. His voice trembled and his shoulders shook harder. “P-please, don’t hurt me and my friends! I-I don’t want to d-die! I’m so sc-scared! Please…” He broke down into loud whimpering sobs and cried into Garak’s shoulder.

 “We aren’t going to shoot-“ started one of the men in an attempt to calm the crying boy.

 Julian cut it off with an even louder and higher-pitched whine and held onto Garak tighter. Garak petted a hand down Julian’s hair, loudly whispering, “Don’t worry, Julian. I’ll protect you from them.”

 “They’re not worth the trouble,” one of the men said. “You two, escort them to their quarters and lock them inside.”

 The one holding Jake let him go, and pulled out his firearm. “Lead the way,” he prompted.

 The second one assigned to them also brandished his weapon, loosely pointing it at them. Jake put his arms around Sisko’s and Kira’s shoulders and started walking. Julian kept his face buried in Garak’s shoulder, letting out a stream of sniffles and little sobs.

 Jake keyed in the door code, and led the group in. The two invaders stayed out, one pulling out a device as the door slid shut.

 As soon as they heard the footsteps heading away from the door, Julian straightened and wiped at his eyes and face. His fingers and palm came away wet from the tears.

 “What an excellent performance, my dear,” Garak complimented.

 “I didn’t know you had that in you,” Sisko added.

 “Neither did I,” Julian remarked, switching to his sleeve to dry his face. “And I’m surprised it actually worked. But I couldn’t think of anything else…” He narrowed his eyes. “Not a word about that to anyone.”

 “If you can pull all that on cue, I’d hate to be your parents,” Jake muttered.

 “If we’re done admiring Julian’s ability to cry, we should start coming up with a plan,” Kira said. She went to the door and touched it, let out a little yelp at the mild electric shock. She tried the door controls, and bit her lip at the shock that time. “I didn’t expect it to be that easy.”

 “I guess the first questions are who those people are and what they want,” Jake said.

 “I can’t say I recognize them,” Sisko answered.

 “Iarlans,” Garak replied. “Notoriously private people who stick to themselves.” At the stares from the others, he quickly added, “They make this beautiful fleece, which I sadly haven’t been able to get my hands on.”

 Julian and Sisko exchanged a quick expression of amusement. Kira shook her head at the excuse and remarked, “For a people who stick to themselves, this surely is a bold move.”

 “Probably a splinter group. I’m no expert on them,” Garak shrugged.

 Sisko went over to his computer. “Whatever their intentions, they certainly knew how to completely catch us off guard.”

 “They just beamed in,” Jake said. “I thought the shields prevented anyone from doing that.”

 “They are supposed to, yes…” Sisko pressed a few buttons on the panel. After a few seconds, he stated, “I can’t access Ops, which means they’ve probably already taken it over.”

 “Quite efficient,” Garak murmured. “I hope we’re up to the challenge.”

 “What’s that supposed to mean?” Kira asked.

 Garak raised his hands. “I meant nothing offensive by it. I only meant that since these are a people we haven’t dealt with before, we don’t know all of their capabilities.”

 “Dax and O’Brien are on Ops shift now. I’m sure they’re doing whatever they can from up there,” Sisko said. “But until we know their purpose for taking over the station, we won’t know the best way to fight back.”

 “So we wait?” Kira asked.

 “For the moment. Besides, it’ll still be confusion out there.”

 Julian let out a sigh. “Unless they start killing people, it might be best if they settle in a bit, think they’ve won this easily.”

 Kira pulled her combadge from her pocket. “Do you think Odo would’ve gotten out of there?”

 “Wouldn’t hurt to try,” Sisko nodded.

 Kira tapped the device. “Kira to Odo.” The only response was static. She tried again, then tried Dax, to the same result. “Don’t tell me they’ve already disabled the comm systems.”

 “Seems they really know what they’re doing,” Jake muttered.

 “What else do you know about these… Iarlans?” Julian asked Garak.

 “Nothing more than I’ve told you.” At Kira’s snort, the Cardassian insisted, “Believe me, I wouldn’t be holding back helpful information at a time like this.”

 Sisko pressed a few buttons on the computer. “There’s not much here on them.” The screen suddenly flashed, and an image of one of the Iarlans, presumably the leader appeared. He was standing in the middle of Ops. “Attention to all people on this station,” the man said. Everyone crowded around the computer screen. “This station has been commandeered. If we have cooperation, no one will be hurt.”

 “Here we go,” Julian breathed as the man on the screen began his speech.


	7. Chapter 7

 “Most definitely a bold move,” Garak remarked when the comm video cut out. “But, as I suspected, not authorized by their government.”

 “Then we are dealing with a rogue faction,” Kira nodded. “If we could get a message out to their government, do you think they would do something about it?”

 Sisko tugged at his ear. “Possibly. It’s certainly an idea to try.”

 “Unfortunately, it would involve reversing whatever they’ve done to the comm systems,” Julian pointed out.

 “Indeed…” Sisko muttered.

 They spent the next several minutes brainstorming ideas and plans. It came to a stop at a light thumping sound. Garak carried on speaking until Julian tapped his shoulder. The Cardassian looked to him with a puzzled expression, then noticed Sisko, Kira, and Jake looking in the direction of the ventilation hatch. Garak heard the next thump, which was louder and closer.

 “You think they’re exploring the tubes?” Jake whispered.

 “Not unless they really want to make a complete map of the station by hand,” Sisko replied just as quietly.

 “I agree that would hardly be their first priority,” Garak nodded.

 “Jake?” came the urgent whisper from the vent.

 “Nog?” Jake responded, hurrying to the wall to open the hatch.

 “Oh, good, you weren’t rounded up,” replied the Ferengi teen as he crawled out of the hatch. “Did you see the message, too?”

 Jake vaguely gestured to the computer. “Hard not to have seen it.”

 Nog stood and dusted himself off, then noticed the four children standing by the computer. “You’re babysitting at a time like this?”

 “Not exactly…” Jake nervously glanced to them.

 “Right… well, what do you think we should do?” Nog asked his friend.

 “What do I think?”

 “Yes. I wasn’t satisfied with just sitting around.”

 “So you decided to crawl through the tubes to find me and hope we could do something together?”

 Sisko bit his lip to muffle the chuckle at the young Ferengi’s ambition. Enough of it got out to draw Nog’s attention back to them.

 “What’s so funny about that?” Nog demanded. He straightened to his full height, and Sisko had to admit that it felt very strange to be on eye level with him. “Commander Sisko sponsored me into Starfleet Academy. What kind of candidate would I be if I didn’t try to do something when I could?”

 “Nog-“ Jake started, trying to stop him before this could get any more awkward.

 “I’m not asking the four of you to help us. You’re just kids. So you can stay here if you want.” At Jake’s insistent whisper of his name, Nog finally took a good look at the boy he was talking to, along with the other three children. “Hold on a minute… you look familiar. All of you do. What’s your name?”

 Sisko smiled. There was no point on keeping this a secret from Nog, not if they wanted him to help take back the station. “Benjamin.”

 Nog glanced from Sisko to Jake and back again. “But… Commander Sisko’s first name is Benjamin…” His eyes widened at the realization.

 Julian hid his giggle at the expression on Nog’s face behind his hand. Kira couldn’t help a little smile of amusement. Garak let out a huff of breath, getting impatient.

 “Commander, I am so sorry. I-I didn’t realize… please, don’t take anything I said personally, and-“

 “It’s alright, Nog.” Sisko raised his hand. “It’s been difficult to take myself seriously like this.”

 Nog let out a visible sigh of relief. Then he said, “If you’re Sisko, then… Major Kira, Doctor Bashir, and Garak?” At the affirmative nods, he muttered. “I should’ve figured it out sooner.”

 “Now that the secret is out, perhaps we could get back to the business at hand?” Garak prompted.

 “What happened?” Nog asked. “You’re all supposed to be in quarantine for some virus or something. That’s what Jake told me.”

 “That’s the official story, yes,” Julian replied. “But as you can see, we’re all perfectly healthy… except for the now physically being children part.”

 “Something happened to us in the runabout back from Bajor,” Kira added. “But Garak is right. We need to get back to deciding what we’re going to do.”

 “Can I help you?” Nog asked. “Whatever you need me to do, I will do it to the best of my ability, sir. I won’t let you down, I promise.”

 “No one could doubt your enthusiasm,” Garak said quietly.

 “At ease,” Sisko replied to the Ferengi. “We could most definitely use your help.”

 Nog’s mouth split into a wide smile, showing his teeth. He clapped his hands together. “Right, then what have we got so far?”

 Sisko mulled over everything that had been discussed before Nog had arrived. “If we can get to the Defiant and get it away from the station, we should be free to send the message, along with distress calls to Starfleet and Bajor. And if there’s any trouble, we should be able to handle it.”

 “We’re bound to meet resistance on the way there,” Kira said.

 Sisko nodded. “We’ll use the tubes as much as we can to get there.”

 “Makes me wish O’Brien was with us. He knows that better than anyone,” Julian remarked.

 Sisko nodded. “For now, we have to operate under the assumption that we’re the only ones free to do this. I think between all of us, we can figure out how to get there.” He went over to the open hatch. With a quick reassuring smile, he bent over and crawled into the space.

 One by one they followed Sisko inside. Julian was second-to-last. He crawled in a couple of meters, and didn’t hear Garak following. He called his name, but didn’t get a response. He turned and went back. At the opening, he looked up, to see Garak looking down at the hatch, a strange expression, like a mix of fear and nervousness, on his face.

 “Elim?” Julian prompted quietly.

 Gark quickly shook his head, his eyes focusing on the boy in front of him.

 “Are you alright?” Julian got out and stood to comfort the Cardassian if needed.

 “Yes, yes… just… not fond of small spaces.”

 “Claustrophobic?”

 “I didn’t say I was afraid of it.” Garak took a deep breath and crawled inside.

 Julian shook his head slightly at Garak’s dismissal, and went in after him. “Well, I’m right behind you if anything happens,” he assured.

 “Yes, well… thank you, my dear,” Garak said so quietly that Julian almost missed it.

 “What are you two doing back there? Keep up,” called the impatient voice of Kira.

 At that prompt, Garak and Julian hurried to catch up. The last thing they all needed was to be separated in this maze of maintenance tubes.

 “One thing about being this size? Crawling through these is much easier,” Sisko commented.

 “Speak for yourself,” Jake muttered. He was moving the most awkwardly with his height.

 “Just don’t accidently kick me in the face,” Nog replied, stopping himself from bumping into the other teen’s behind as Jake stopped to reposition himself.

 Julian hoped that Sisko’s statement reassured Garak’s hesitation about doing this. Being smaller would make the space larger, whether the Cardassian’s claustrophobia was true or not, despite his denial.

 For the most part, the journey to the Defiant was quiet. They made steady progress, stopping only when they heard activity in the corridors, not wanting to risk being heard.

 Sisko led them to a hatch opening and whispered, “That’s as far as we can go.” He slowly pushed the opening off and poked his head out to check if it was clear. Then he quickly clambered out and beckoned for the others to follow. “We should be close to the Defiant.”

 “Do you think they’ll have people guarding the airlock?” Nog asked as Jake pulled him up to his feet.

 “Possibly, if they’re smart,” Sisko answered. “Come on.” He took off at a jogging pace.

 Garak let out a noticeable breath as he emerged from the hatch and quickly shook his head. Julian didn’t say anything, just lightly patted his shoulder as he crawled out.

 A moment later, Sisko raised his hand to silently tell the others to stop before they rounded a bend in the corridor. He peeked out, and let out a near-silent sigh. He turned and whispered, “They’re that smart. Two guards.”

 “What about a runabout instead?” Jake asked.

 “Probably the same,” Kira replied. “I doubt they would guard only one ship if they know there are others people could escape on.”

 “Two you said?” Garak took a peek around the corner himself. “Shouldn’t be a problem.”

 Sisko pulled the Cardassian back. “We can’t simply run up and knock them out. We can’t risk anyone knowing we’re free and up to something.”

 “That’s too bad. Even with our smaller size, I think we could take them,” Kira said.

 “Are you thinking a distraction?” Julian asked Sisko.

 “Exactly.” Sisko looked over his team to decide who would be best.

 “Sir, if you need someone to distract them, I volunteer,” Nog said.

 “You know I’m a fast runner,” Jake volunteered.

 “Yes, but you’re also a bigger target than the rest of us,” Sisko replied. He let out a hard breath. The longer they stood here debating, the more chance they would be discovered. “Jake, Nog, run them around, give them the slip, then get back to the Defiant airlock as quickly as you can. Go, before I change my mind.”  

 Jake and Nog nodded to Sisko, then to each other, knowing how they would play this. They strolled around the corridor bend casually, seemingly only focused on each other.

 “I don’t know, this is just so weird,” Nog said, looking up to Jake. “We can’t call anyone on any comms, there’s a bunch of locked doors, and I haven’t seen any adults.”

 “Yeah, I wish I could contact my dad right now. He’d surely know what’s going on. But I could barely get my computer working.”

 Garak nodded his approval. “Acting natural and clueless.” He was quickly hushed by Kira.

 “Stop right there!” commanded one of the Iarlans.

 Jake and Nog froze in their tracks. Jake nervously smiled. “Oh, hi… could you tell us what’s going on?”

 “You’re coming with us,” said the other being.

 Nog let out a shaky chuckle. “That doesn’t really answer the question.”

 “We’re taking you to be with others.”

 “And where would that be?” Jake replied.

 The two men moved forward, leaving no more room for argument. Jake and Nog instantly took off running, slipping past them and heading the opposite way. As hoped, both guards gave chase.

 Sisko waited a moment after all four were out of sight, then rushed to the airlock. He punched in the access code, and waved the other three in as the door rolled open. He stopped Garak from following Kira and Julian into the Defiant. “Stay here and open the door when they come back.”

 “Of course,” Garak replied, finding a good spot to see the corridor outside.

 Jake and Nog, as soon as out of immediate eyeline of their pursuers, ducked into the first door that would open. “Storage Bay. Perfect,” Nog commented.

 “Come on, up.” Jake bent to give Nog a boost up onto the crates. They quickly climbed to the top of a stack and laid flat. From here, they could see the door, and watched as it opened.

 “Where did they go?” asked one of the Iarlans.

 “They could be in here.”

 “Do we really need to find them? They’re a couple of children.”

 “I suppose you’re right. Not that they could do anything of note even if they wanted to.”

 “I hope you remember the way back to that airlock. They turned us around.”

 The two teens let out bated breaths as the invaders left. But they couldn’t spare a moment to rest, and hurriedly climbed back down to the ground. After a tentative glance around to make sure it was clear, they ran their way back to the Defiant airlock, hoping they had left the two guards confused enough and get there before they did.

 Garak nearly jumped as the two teens urgently knocked on the airlock door. He quickly let them in, and said, “It appears as though you succeeded.”

 Jake and Nog didn’t answer, and breathed heavily as they walked into the ship. All three went to the bridge, where Sisko, Kira, and Julian were at the control consoles. Sisko smiled at his son, obviously relieved he had not been caught and was unharmed.

 Kira looked up to them and said, “This might not work. It looks like everything is locked down.”

 “I wouldn’t give up hope just yet,” Julian replied.   

 Sisko sighed. “All the same, you might want to settle in. This could be a little while.”


	8. Chapter 8

 “I take it we can’t simply leave,” Garak said, leaning against a wall.

 “Docking clamps are locked down, and command overrides aren’t working, “Julian answered.

 “Not having any immediate luck with sending out any communications, either,” Kira stated.

 Nog sat in one of the empty console chairs. “So what do we do now?”

 “Nerys, keep trying to get communications open.” Sisko got up from the operations console and boosted himself up into the captain’s chair to think. Julian couldn’t help the little smile at the sight of a child sitting there, though the familiar determined expression on Sisko’s face left no doubt he was still the station commander, despite the physical change.

 “So, we need another plan, then,” Jake sighed.

 “Let’s work with the assumption that they’ve done all this from Ops,” Sisko said.

 “Meaning that we’d have to get there to reverse it,” said Kira.

 “It also means Ops would be the most heavily guarded,” Garak pointed out.

 “Indeed…” Sisko rubbed at the bridge of his nose.

 “We can only give so many of them the runaround,” Jake said, going over to the replicator to get a snack.

 Kira grunted in frustration. “If the Chief were here, he’d be more able to do something with this comm array than me.”

 Garak went over to her. “Not that I know anything about Federation ship comm systems, but perhaps a fresh perspective would help?”

 Kira looked to Sisko, who nodded. “Might as well let him try. You could use a few minutes away from it.”

 “It’s all yours,” Kira let Garak have the seat, and she joined Jake in getting something to eat.

 Julian went over to Garak nad leaned over his shoulder. He quietly teased, “Not trying to get information on the Defiant, are you?”

 Garak turned his head to glare at the other boy. “Do you really think I’d use this situation to do anything like that?”

 “Perhaps,” Julian grinned. Without another word, he joined the others at the replicator, and ordered a Tarkalean tea. A couple minutes later, Sisko told Nog to take a turn at the communications console. Julian ordered another tea for Garak as the Cardassian came over. “No luck?”

 “Unfortunately,” Garak replied.

 Julian dropped his voice volume to a tease, “Probably for the best, since we don’t need you under suspicion for somehow figuring out how to fix it.”

 Garak raised an eyeridge. “Of course. Are you going to suggest any helpful suggestions?”

 It was Julian’s turn to glare at the other boy. “I am thinking, you know.”

 “Could’ve fooled me, my dear.”

 With a huff, Julian finished his tea and went back to the operations console to see what he could do.

A few minutes passed until Sisko stated, “We have to get to Ops. It’s the only way.”

 “Using the tubes again?” Jake asked.

 “As much as we can, yes. I think one leads directly to my office.”

 “Surely there will be at least one Iarlan in your office,” Kira pointed out.

 “We’ll need a distraction to clear out as many from Ops as we can. If some of us can get to my office, lock them out of it, and get Dax to reroute Ops functions to my computer…”

 “What if she can’t?” Nog asked.

 “I’m sure I can at least get the Defiant free of the interference without that.” Sisko got down from the captain’s chair. “Right, we’ll split into two teams. Nerys, Jake, you’re with me to get to Ops. Julian, Garak, Nog, you three will cause a distraction.”

 “Did you have anything specific in mind?” Garak inquired.

 “Be creative. As long as it causes confusion in Ops.”

 “I’m sure we’ll figure something out,” Julian asserted.

 “When you think you’ve done enough, get back to the Defiant to send out a communication to Starfleet. Everyone clear?”

 At the affirmative nods from everyone on the Defiant bridge, Sisko smiled, “Let’s get our station back.”

  ********

 After setting a time to cause the distraction, arming themselves with phasers from the Defiant’s armoury, and leaving the ship, the two groups separated quickly, to give any opposition they might come across less of a target.

 Nog came up with the idea to go to an engineering junction within the maintenance tubes to send out false alarms. The idea was certainly better than physically going up to Ops and leading the Iarlans on a chase, and without any better options from Julian and Garak, they went with it.

 “Just how do you know about this?” Julian asked the Ferengi as they crawled to their destination.

 “I’ve been studying under Chief O’Brien.” Nog stopped at a split. “Um… this way,” he said before taking the left.

 “And he taught you how to set off false alarms?”

 “Of course not. But if we can fix things, we can set them off.”

 “If setting off several alarms around the station doesn’t cause havoc, I don’t know what will,” Garak remarked. He stared straight ahead at Julian’s backside to prevent himself from thinking about the walls of the tubes.

 ********

 Sisko, Kira, and Jake quickly but carefully made their way through the station corridors, heading for the access hatch that would hopefully take them to Sisko’s office.

“So, what kind of distraction do you think they’ll come up with?” Jake asked.

 “As long as it doesn’t involve too much damage to the station, it doesn’t matter. It just needs to get anyone in my office out of it.”

 “You say that now,” Kira teased with a smirk.

 “Hey!” A voice called out from behind them.

 “Run!” Sisko urged. They didn’t want to get into a fight, not wanting to attract any more possible attention to them. “Into the first access hatch you can find.”

 “Stop!” the voice was accompanied by footsteps coming after them. “Stop now!”

 Sisko, Kira, and Jake kept moving. Jake’s longer legs pulled him ahead, and he kneeled beside a hatch. As he worked to open it, Sisko and Kira turned and drew their phasers to cover him.

 Jake got the hatch open and put the covering to one side. At the same time, he heard a cry of pain. He looked to the other two in time to see Sisko fall to the floor. “Dad!”


	9. Chapter 9

 Jake scurried to Sisko and Kira, the girl returning fire. There was no way she could lift Sisko, and stopping her fire to drag him would get them both shot. Jake dragged Sisko out of the line of fire from the invaders and checked him over. A low moan came from his mouth, and Jake let out a sigh of relief. “He’s alive!”

 “Good, come on,” Kira prompted.

 Jake half picked the younger boy up and carried him over to the open hatch, Kira covering them from behind. Jake crawled in first, then pulled Sisko in after him. Kira followed a moment later, having made the intruders cautious enough to not immediately follow them, and pulled the hatch covering back on. Since that bend was out of sight of the enemy, they sprinted past it in their pursuit.

 “That was close,” Kira said. “Almost caught us.”

 Jake’s concern was for his father. He found the cause of the pained cry, a phaser-like burn on his leg.

 “He’s been stunned,” Kira diagnosed. “Iarlan bodies must have tougher skin to leave a burn like that on one of us.”

 “So what do we do with him?” Jake asked, panic evident in his voice. We don’t know when the distraction from the others will happen, and we can’t leave him here.”

 “We take him with us, and hope he wakes up soon,” Kira stated. “We’ll be slower, but we do need him when we get to his office.”

 “Right… right,” Jake tried to get control of his breathing.

 Kira maneuvered around them to get in front and lead the way through the tubes. There was just enough vertical space for Jake to position Sisko on his back and crawl after her.

 Their progress was indeed slower, with Jake having to readjust and go cautiously to prevent Sisko from failing off and hurting him more. “Please, wake up soon,” he whispered to the unconscious boy draped along his back.

 ********

 “Here we are,” Nog said as they emerged into a hub area where they could finally stand.

 Garak took several deep breaths, easier than before, as he stretched his arms up.

 “You alright?” Julian quietly inquired.

 “Yes, of course,” Garak dismissed. To keep his mind off the potential claustrophobia, he went to Nog at the biggest node and asked what he could do.

 “I’ll keep watch, then,” Julian supplied, settling on the floor in the middle of the area, listening and looking for any sign of Iarlans coming through the tubes. They all didn’t think any would, since they hadn’t alerted any patrolling intruders on the way here. But it still would serve to be vigilant and not become too confident in their success so far.

 After a couple of wrong rewirings, Nog announced that the alarms would go off in Ops, the Promenade, and docking areas. 

 “Wait,” Julian stood. “Let’s give Sisko more time to get there, just in case they got held up along the way.”

 Garak agreed, “It wouldn’t do to set it off and they’re not ready.”

 Nog rechecked their work a few times, even though he knew it was sound, to fill the time and keep his nervousness in check.

 Garak let out a little chuckle. Julian and Nog looked at him and asked, “What?”

 “Oh, nothing… I’m only imagining the reactions of the Iarlans when they see they were defeated by six children.”

 “Hey, only two of us are actually children,” Julian corrected, which Nog huffed his protest at.

 “Not to their eyes,” Garak responded. “They wouldn’t try something like this again, if they can be defeated by children.”

 Julian laughed a little. “Yeah, fearsome little beings, we are.”

 “Too bad we don’t have any scary masks,” Nog joined in.

 “We can manage without those, I’m sure,” Garak smiled.

 Julian twisted his face into an angry and intimidating expression, which only made the other two stifle their laughter. “Really?” he asked.

 “Sorry, my dear, but you can’t pull that off too well,” the Cardassian teased. “I delegate Nog to intimidate anyone.”

 Julian pouted slightly. “Fair enough, I guess.”

 “If we need someone to cry again, it’s all yours,” Garak grinned.

 Julian let off a glare, which was undermined by the little smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

 They waited a good while longer, justifying that even if Sisko, Kira, and Jake were sitting there waiting, it would be better to let them get impatient than not be in position.

 “Alright, turn them on,” Julian nodded to the Ferengi.

 “False alarms, coming right up.”

 ********

 Jake sat in the tube near the hatch that led out to Sisko’s office, watching over the still-unconscious boy. Kira was almost flush against the hatch, listening to the Iarlans in the office. She counted two voices at random intervals, probably the leader and second-in-command.

 “Come on…” Kira whispered, both for Sisko to recover and Julian’s group to set off their distraction.

 Sisko let out another moan, and Jake quickly shushed him, hoping the invaders did not have super-hearing senses. Jake didn’t hide his smile as his father’s eyes blinked open.

 “Jake?” Sisko asked.

 Jake shushed him again, and put a hand on Sisko’s shoulder. He whispered, “Are you okay?”

 Sisko gingerly sat up, and winced at the flaring pain in his leg. “I take it they got me,” his whisper the same volume as Jake’s.

 “Yeah, I had to carry you through the tubes.”

 Kira scooted to them and reported, “Glad to see you awake. We’re at your office, waiting for the distraction.”

 Sisko rubbed the back of his head. “Right, good. Did I miss anything?”

 “Just crawling through tubes,” Kira said.

 “In that case….” Sisko said with a teasing grin. He still had a sense of humour. He carefully moved his leg to get a better look at the burned through fabric and skin. He could feel that the injury was deeper than the skin. “Definitely worth a trip to the infirmary after this.”

 Satisfied that Sisko would be fine, Kira went back to listening at the hatch.

 “I hope nothing’s happened to the others.” Jake’s anxiety rose.

 “They might be waiting to make sure we’re in position,” Sisko suggested. “There’s no need to rush this part of the plan.”

 A short moment later, they heard the blaring of alarms. “That’ll do,” Sisko remarked.

 Kira heard the whoosh of the door opening. “Now!” She burst through the hatch first, just as the door slid closed, the sound of the alarm masking the noise she made. Both Iarlans had gone out to ask what the problem was.

 Sisko followed more slowly, but still limping at an urgent pace. He quickly typed in the code into his computer to lock the door. Then they ducked out of sight in case someone happened to glance in their direction. Jake joined them.

 Kira peered out and reported, “They’re definitely occupied.”

 Sisko nodded. “As long as we stay out of sight, they’ll think it’s a security measure that this door is locked.” He raised his head back over the computer screen of the desk to see what he was doing, wincing at the pressure put on his injured leg. “Now, let’s see what they’ve been up to, and what we can do…”


End file.
